Celtics vs. Warriors NBA Finals matchup is a travel nightmare

The Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors will be tested by their travel schedule during the NBA Finals with more than 2,500 miles between them.

It doesn’t get much more east and west for the NBA Finals than a matchup between the Celtics and the Warriors.

Boston is literally the most eastern city in the NBA. San Francisco is the second most western team in the league by a tiny margin.

As a result, the Celtics and Warriors can look forward to a ridiculous amount of travel during their seven-game series to decide the NBA title.

Celtics vs. Warriors NBA Finals matchup is a travel nightmare

As one user on Reddit pointed out, Boston could cover up to 13,455 miles during the course of the matchup. Golden State would cover 10,764 miles before it’s all over.

Players, staff and some fans out there will be earning their frequent flier miles during this one.

However, this is not the worst travel matchup possible in the Finals.

In fact, it’s technically shorter travel one way for each team than it was in 1964 when they squared off in the NBA Finals. The then-San Francisco Warriors played at the Cow Palace in Daly City, which is further from Boston than their current home, the Chase Center.

So what is the furthest possible NBA Finals matchup? If the Miami Heat come out of the east and the Portland Trail Blazers come out of the west, they’d have it. As the crow flies, the Celtics and Warriors are 2,694 miles from each other. For the Heat and Blazers, it’s 2,707 miles.

Game 1 between the Celtics and Warriors tips off on Thursday night at 9:00 p.m. ET.